Essex Eagles face Hampshire at The Ageas Bowl in the Vitality Blast on Sunday buoyed by the nine-run victory against Sussex Sharks that keeps the club's hopes of reaching the knockout stages of the competition alive.

With three matches remaining in the qualifying stage, the Eagles will probably need to win all three games to secure a place in the last eight, and captain Simon Harmer was glowing in his praise for his side after the win at Hove.

Harmer said: "I thought we batted extremely well, the batters did a great job and the bowlers were exceptional.

"It was a must-win game and you could see the boys put their hearts and souls into that performance. As a captain and a spectator at times, it was really, really motivating to watch.

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"I think that we've lacked a little bit of that competitive edge in the tournament so overall, it was a good evening for the Eagles."

The South African spin ace acknowledged that having four matches ruined by the weather, including the three recent matches in succession, had not helped the Eagles cause to reach the latter stages of the competition.

Harmer added: "It has been difficult, the weather killed any momentum and it has been tough but, no excuses, we have let ourselves down.

But hopefully, if we can put in another performance on Sunday similar to the Sussex one, then that can really boost us as we attempt to win three out of the last three."

Warwickshire advanced to the brink of Division One safety after Essex were forced into a dogged rearguard action on the third day of their Specsavers County Championship Division One tussle at Edgbaston.